Donald Trump claimed during his lie-packed State of the Union address this week that the U.S. women’s ice hockey team — which he recently drew backlash over with what critics called a “distasteful” joke — would, after all, be heading to the White House to celebrate their gold medal win at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.
But one of the team’s biggest stars didn’t exactly confirm that.
On Thursday’s episode of CNN’s “The Story Is With Elex Michaelson,” anchor Elex Michaelson asked MVP Caroline Harvey whether the invitation was “true” and if a date had been set.
Michaelson: President Trump said that the women's team is coming to the WH. Is that true? Harvey: I'm not sure… I haven't heard any word on thatMichaelson: Would you go?Harvey: I mean, I'm just busy right now with school. pic.twitter.com/dKcGG4a3Pl— Acyn (@Acyn) February 27, 2026
Harvey: I'm not sure… I haven't heard any word on that
Harvey: I mean, I'm just busy right now with school. pic.twitter.com/dKcGG4a3Pl
Harvey, a defensive player for the University of Wisconsin, said she was “unsure.”
“I’m not sure,” the athlete continued. “Obviously, right now we’re all back with our respective teams, pro or college. But I haven’t heard any word on that.”
Michaelson then asked whether she would attend if invited.
She replied: “I mean, I’m just busy right now with school and obviously, like you said, we’ve got a championship to win here, and we’ve got a lot of stuff ahead of us.”
“So, personally, I need to finish out school and take care of business in that way,” she added. “But, yeah, I feel like I have my hands pretty tied right now.”
Harvey’s response quickly drew attention online, where some commenters suggested it was a politely worded brush-off.
That’s the politest “Hell No” I’ve ever heard!— BigBlueWaveUSA2026® 🇺🇸🌊🇺🇦 (@BigBlueWaveUSA) February 27, 2026
That’s the politest “Hell No” I’ve ever heard!
The classy way to say, "I'm washing my hair."— KrisFromMerrCo (@KrisFromMerrCo) February 27, 2026
The classy way to say, "I'm washing my hair."
"I mean, we have a McDonald's in Madison..."— Michael West (@NMKSNJ) February 27, 2026
"I mean, we have a McDonald's in Madison..."
And I also have a hair appointment, it's really difficult.— Jeff Bergheim 🦤 (@BergheimJeff) February 27, 2026
And I also have a hair appointment, it's really difficult.
She understood the assignment and absolutely crushed it. 😂— Tiffany Shannon (@tiffanysiobhan1) February 27, 2026
She understood the assignment and absolutely crushed it. 😂
It came amid ongoing attention to the response from members of the gold medal-winning U.S. men’s team to Trump’s call on Sunday, when the president joked about having to bring the equally successful women’s squad to the capital too or else he’d “be impeached.”
The men’s team visited the White House on Tuesday, when Trump tried on one of the gold medals, joked about keeping it and then served up McDonald’s to the squad.
